


yellow roses and purple butterflies

by death-by-ladybug (fandomchildd), fandomchildd



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: 5+1 Things, Akumatized Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, Akumatized Kagami Tsurugi, Ambiguous/Open Ending, André Glacier's Ice Cream, Badass Kagami Tsurugi, Badass Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Developing Relationship, Dragon Kagami Tsurugi | Ryuko, Episode: s02 Le Patineur | Frozer, Episode: s03 Chat Blanc, Episode: s03 Desperada, Episode: s03 Ikari Gozen, Episode: s03 Mangeamour | Heart Hunter (Battle of the Miraculous Part 1), Episode: s03 Miracle Queen (The Battle of the Miraculous Part 2), Episode: s03 Oni-Chan, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Identity Reveal, Light Angst, Multi, POV Kagami Tsurugi, Polyamory, Rejection, Secret Identity Fail, me looking at the order that the episodes should probably go in: ahahaha thats funny, we do not stan andre the ice cream man in this house
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:55:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26842471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomchildd/pseuds/death-by-ladybug, https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomchildd/pseuds/fandomchildd
Summary: five times secret identities, relationships, feelings, and akumas go horribly wrong and one time everything goes just right
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Kagami Tsurugi, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug/Kagami Tsurugi, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug/Kagami Tsurugi
Comments: 1
Kudos: 117





	yellow roses and purple butterflies

**Author's Note:**

> kagami tsurugi zine is finally out!! heres my piece!

  1. **Frozer**



Adrien sits down on the steps of the ice rink next to Kagami, holding out a yellow rose. “I’m- I’m still trying to figure everything out. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“You were just ‘figuring things out’ with me then?” Kagami questions, unable to hide the bitterness and hurt that seeps into her tone, trying to maintain her cool composure even as her eyes burn from holding back tears. 

“No! No, I really do like you, Kagami. But there’s someone else… and you deserve better than to be a rebound,” Adrien explains, and she takes the rose. Yellow, the color of friendship. 

“So… friends?” Kagami asks, twirling the rose slowly as she looks up to meet Adrien’s eyes. 

Right then she knows it’s a mistake. He’s so honest, so innocent, his eyes a shimmering green that she can’t get out of her head. Some part of her knows he’ll be happier with someone less similar, more affectionate, but another part of her insists they could’ve been happy. 

“Friends,” he confirms, relaxing slightly in relief. “I know I’m not exactly the best with social situations, but I like you, Kagami, and I would hate to lose you over my stupid mistakes.”

Kagami leans against him peacefully. “Us sheltered rich kids have to stick together, don’t we? We’ll learn. Together.”

  1. **Ikari Gozen**



Kagami doesn’t regret it, sneaking out to make a friend. She’s met Marinette before, yes, but Marinette has always seemed to dislike her. She’s not sure why, but then again, she’s always been horrible with people so she’s not really surprised. It stings a little, knowing that the girl Adrien can’t stop talking about- even though he _still_ denies liking her as more than a friend, it’s painfully obvious- she doesn’t like _Kagami_. So Kagami wants this to be something like a second chance. 

It doesn’t go like that. It goes like they take each other’s phones for the last part and Marinette’s friend Alya calls, and Kagami accidentally answers, and Alya’s been egging Marinette on, keeping her jealous and the two girls far from friends, and she _doesn’t seem to know she’s causing more harm than good_. 

And Kagami’s pretty sure her mother has called by now, and everything has gone wrong and _she just wanted a friend_.

She finds Marinette again, awkwardly trying to cover up for Kagami on the phone, and Kagami feels a surge of gratitude, but it’s too late, she sees a butterfly and it’s _heading for her mom_ and this isn’t good, this is _terrifying_ , but then Marinette scoops her up in a bridal carry and Kagami _might_ be a little bit gay. 

But then Marinette is hurrying away, stuttering out some excuse, and then _Ladybug_ is fighting the akuma and _Marinette_ is gone and it’s far, far too easy for Kagami to put the dots together as Ladybug lands in front of her with a box she doesn’t recognize, with strange markings that radiate the same energy as the heroes and akumas, but _wilder_ , like Ladybug feels slightly different than Chat Noir, and Kagami hasn’t been near any of the other heroes but she’s pretty sure they’d each have their own energy too. 

And being Ryuuko is a rush, wild, crackling energy covering her body, everything she wants, with the weight of responsibility, and Ladybug looks at Ryuuko and tells her this time she needs to _hesitate_ , to let them explain, to know the rules, and Kagami _understands_ now. It’s Marinette under that mask. And she’s _beautiful_ like this, confident and strong and sure. 

They’ve won orange juice, and that’s more than enough for Kagami. 

  1. **Oni-chan**



Kagami has been akumatized before. 

She remembers anger surging through her veins, emotions running on high, and the feel of liquid silver over her muscles. She remembers how the sword felt as an extension of her body, and the emotionless wreck she was left afterwards.

But this is different. 

This time, she is furious _for_ Adrien. She’s heard about Lila from Adrien before. She’s heard her lies and how she doesn’t seem to care about personal space. She’s heard how Lila cornered Marinette in a bathroom (and how Marinette won’t tell Adrien that- or let Kagami tell him). She’s heard it all and seeing _that girl_ with _Adrien_ \- well, she suspects, from his face, that she didn’t ask. Or care that she was clearly making him uncomfortable. 

Kagami is _furious_. And as the akuma takes over again, crawling over her skin, Kagami knows as soon as this is over she’s going to talk to Marinette about this, and probably Adrien too. 

She loves him, but he _really_ needs to learn how to set boundaries and stand up for himself regarding personal space. She’s not surprised he’s like that, not knowing his father, but boundaries are important. 

This akuma is different than being Riposte. This time, there’s a coiled rose inside her, thorns trapping it there on the outside. Her armor feels stiff and unmoving, her face a mask of anger. 

When the akuma is gone, she feels rough and raw, the rose in her heart about to bloom. She takes Chat Noir’s hand as he offers it, recognizing the glint in his eyes, the way he looks at her, and it’s so _Adrien_ suddenly a few pieces snap into place for Kagami. 

He’s not looking back as he offers to take her home, but Kagami does, and she doesn’t miss the way Ladybug’s face falls when Chat Noir doesn’t return her fist bump. She’s seen that look before. She knows that look. She’s seen it a thousand times in the mirror. 

  1. **Chat Blanc**



Kagami hates feelings. 

That’s what she decides as Adrien and Marinette start dating, as she listens to Adrien go on and on for hours about how amazing Marinette is, and Kagami _knows_ , she likes them _both_ and watching how happy they are together stings. 

She _knows_ how amazing Marinette is, she _knows_ that they’re happy, and she _wants_ to be happy for them but she’s not. She’s just sad. 

Adrien and Marinette are her only two friends. And now they have each other, so why would they ever need her?

It’s this that fills her empty days of fencing and schoolwork and nothings while Adrien and Marinette make headlines as Paris’ sweethearts, going on dates instead of hanging out with _her_ and Kagami hates feeling jealous but at this point she’s not even sure which one of them she’s jealous of. 

She’s pretty sure it’s Marinette but then Ladybug and Chat Noir start dating and she sees all the pieces of the puzzle and she’s more jealous of _Adrien_ that Marinette. 

Adrien has everything he could ever want. Chat Noir is _freedom_ , Marinette is light and creativity and everything else and Adrien has it all. 

But then she gets a call from Marinette and she’s not so sure, because _Adrien_ ’s freedom is being threatened at the cost of their happiness and Marinette’s crying into her ear and Kagami is filled with _rage_ as she calls Adrien and tells him they need to talk. 

They meet up after fencing. It’s the deadline Gabriel gave Marinette to break up with Adrien. Kagami tells Adrien exactly what Gabriel’s doing and she can practically _feel_ the destruction and anger and emotion suddenly manifesting like a fog in the room, heavy enough that she can feel it on her skin, and she’s trying to blink it away so they can come up with a solution when the butterfly lands. 

Kagami’s pretty sure the destruction is acting as a glamour, to cover up Adrien’s identity, because then she’s back as Oni-chan, the thorny armor covering her heart, digging into her skin, baring her emotions out to the world, and she’s _aware_ , aware of the destruction beside her, like a storm, overtaking everything, and it’s like sandpaper against her skin until she’s beside him, destruction and whatever she is, power and revenge at their fingertips, and it’s _not_ Ladybug who stands before them to fight. It’s a girl in gray that Chat Blanc recognizes as _Marinette_ , as Multimouse. 

They will not hurt her. 

That doesn’t seem to stop Ladybug, looking small and lost, from taking them both down when Hawk Moth takes control and kills Multimouse, they snap right back and the whole world falls to heel, but then Bunnyx is there, leaving behind a sweet, innocent Ladybug, and they _killed_ her, their mouse, and then it’s Kagami and Adrien, alone in a fractured world, and Ladybug tells them that she’ll fix this, and Kagami feels like everything is going to change instead. 

Kagami wakes up with a strange feeling that she’s missing something, and Adrien calling her about a nightmare he had. Later, Marinette will do the same, but it’s still too early for Marinette to be awake now. 

  1. **Desperada**



Watching Adrien interact with Marinette and Luka is nearly painful. 

It’s obvious that he likes Marinette, but Kagami knows he’s deep in denial to figure it out and ask her out already. Part of her is glad he hasn’t figured it out yet, because she’s pretty sure he wouldn’t deal with yet _another_ crush very well. And she’s pretty sure Luka is going to snatch Marinette up before Adrien can even blink. 

She almost regrets letting Adrien sneak out with her. She’ll get in so much trouble if she’s caught, and for what? To watch this disaster waiting to happen? But she knows she would never do that. Adrien deserves the time spent with his friends. She only fears what will happen to his _heart_. 

Her heart is heavy in her chest, torn between wanting him to feel the same pain as she does, watching him love someone else, and wanting to protect him from heartbreak and keep him untainted by pain. 

But he’s already had his fair share of pain, and so Kagami decides she might as well try to help get him out of this mess before he gets hurt. 

With a deafening boom, an akuma bursts into the boat, and Kagami takes her chance, pulling Marinette away with her until they’ve come across an area with decent cover. “Transform,” she tells Marinette tiredly. “I already know.”

Marinette masks her shock and transforms, pink, bubbly light covering her form. “How long?” she asks, and Kagami gives an awkward smile 

“I didn’t mean to find out. But I’ve only seen Adrien look at you like the way he looks at Ladybug, he’s just too blind to see it,” Kagami tells her. It’s a lie. He looks at Marinette like she’s the sun, the brightest person in the room, and Ladybug like the moon, the one thing you’d spend hours staring at and never get tired, that you could _wax_ poetic about- Adrien’s wearing off on her, she supposes- and he’s in love in with the moon. He’s just too blinded by the sun to realize how much he loves her. 

He looks at Kagami like she’s a star. Just as bright as the sun but too distant, too far away. 

Kagami supposes she’s been blinded, too. She loves Adrien, she always has. But Marinette is her moon where Adrien is her stars. 

**+1. Love Eater**

Kagami’s never seen anything as beautiful as Marinette with her hair down. 

As she fishes her hair ties out of the ball pit, she seems completely unaware of how entranced Kagami and Adrien both are, unable to tear their eyes away from this girl, and for a moment Kagami can actually see them all being happy together, no broken hearts, no leaving someone behind, they could just be them. 

Marinette drags herself out of the ball pit, and Adrien starts playing the piano, a quiet, almost haunting song, and Kagami can feel it down to her _bones_ , and it feels like _freedom_ , and _happiness_ , and _joy_ , all in a little bubble for only their appreciation, for no one else. Kagami doesn’t recognize it, and she’s pretty sure Adrien’s the one who wrote it, because there’s something in the notes that just makes her heart sing along. She hums along, standing up from where she’s resting her head against the piano and offers Marinette a hand, pressing a kiss against her knuckles like she’s seen Adrien do a hundred times behind their masks, and pulls her into a slow dance, their faces close enough that Kagami could count the few freckles across her cheeks, shrouded by a darkening pink blush.

The moment is ruined by the Gorilla, and Adrien grabs both of their hands- Marinette’s not the only one who blushes this time- and they flee the roof, rushing out of the hotel before they’re caught. 

It’s- it’s exhilarating, the smiles shared between the three of them, just _them_ , and Marinette’s smile is a little lost and a lot found, and Adrien’s is so warm and loving and Kagami’s pretty sure he’s still perfectly clueless. But they’ve got all the time in the world, now. 

They’ve got all the time in the world so they run as fast as their legs can carry them, away from responsibilities and restrictions and everything holding them back, and when the three of them collapse onto a park bench, breathless and laughing, fingers still laced together tightly, Kagami realizes that none of them _want_ to let go. 

But Marinette does. She stands up and sits next to Kagami instead, lacing her fingers with hers instead of Adrien’s. Kagami’s breath catches. 

Then a mischievous sparkle lights up Marinette’s eyes and she calls “Race you to Andre’s!”, pointing to the ice cream cart Kagami had noticed. 

Kagami’s not really sure if Marinette wanted to hold her hand over Adrien’s or just wanted to be the closest to the ice cream cart, but she kinda gets the feeling that it’s both. 

Unsurprisingly, Marinette beats them both to the cart. 

“I’ve never been here before,” Kagami says quietly, tilting her head towards Adrien. She’s pretty sure Marinette can’t hear her until she whirls around with a gasp. 

“You’ve never been to Andre’s?” Marinette sounds scandalized, but it’s just an ice cream cart. Adrien was Kagami’s first friend and Marinette her second, was it really such a surprise?

“Andre’s is supposedly soulmate ice cream. Couples who get ice cream at Andre’s stay together forever,” Adrien explains, and Marinette nods. 

“My papa proposed to Maman through this cart,” she says, linking her arm with Kagami’s and her other arm with Adrien’s. “I don’t know if it’s really magical, but… I like to believe that it is.” She looks up at her friends shyly. 

Kagami pulls her arm away from Marinette and wraps it around her waist instead. Adrien throws his arm over her shoulders, meeting her eyes over Marinette’s head. 

She’s pretty sure he’s starting to get it.

Kagami spaces out for a moment as Adrien and Marinette talk excitedly to the ice cream man, and he says something that makes them both frown and Marinette asks “Why not?” her gaze determined, and _Kagami_ wouldn’t want to cross Marinette like that, this old man doesn’t stand a chance. 

He stumbles for an answer, and she doesn’t know what Marinette is asking about, but it doesn’t take long for him to fold in on himself, scooping something up and handing it to Marinette, standing in the middle, and he’s talking again, but Kagami doesn’t hear it because all she sees is the ice cream cone, a scoop as green as Adrien’s eyes with chocolate triangles like cat ears- like _Chat’s_ ears- on top of something that looks likes caramel swirl with dried strawberries like Ryuuko’s horns on top of something red, almost too red, with chocolate chips like Ladybug spots, and Kagami’s pretty sure Adrien and Marinette aren’t _that_ oblivious- and she’s right, if the way Marinette tenses up and Adrien’s eyes widen is anything to go by, and Kagami finds herself gently steering them back to the bench before they both finish processing. 

“My lady?” Adrien says quietly, and Marinette throws her arms around him, wiping away tears. 

“ _Chaton_ ,” she replied, burying her face in his shoulder, and Kagami catches the ice cream, looking away. This is just for them. She’s an outsider here.

A hand reaches out and grabs the back of her shirt, pulling her in too. “You’re one of us too, Gami,” Marinette says, and Adrien hasn’t said anything but he untangles an arm from Marinette and hugs her, too. 

There’s a loud crash in the distance and they break apart. The akuma alert is going off, irritatingly loud, and Marinette curses with surprising vigor. 

“I guess we’ll meet up around here later?” Adrien suggests. Kagami smiles, starting to head for cover as Marinette scans the area for somewhere to hide. 

Marinette meets Kagami’s eyes and stops her for a second. “Don’t go far, okay? We might need back up.” She pauses, then something flickers over her face and she leans in to kiss Kagami’s cheek. “Never hesitate, right?” she says confidently, then her moment of confidence melts away and she hurries away with a squeak, dragging Adrien with her. 

Kagami’s almost glad she left so quickly. She holds a hand up to her cheek in shock, a blush spreading over her face like wildfire. 

It’s a few minutes later when Ladybug lands heavily in front of Kagami, determination glimmering in her eyes. She holds out a black and red spotted ticket to a carousel. “Go here and tell the Guardian that Tikki sent you for Longg,” she instructs, taking a deep breath. “Hawkmoth showed up, it’s going to be a tough battle.”

Kagami nods and takes off in a run. Ladybug swings away, drawing Hawk Moth’s attention away from Kagami. 

Kagami ducks into the park, locating the carousel easily enough. She knocks on the window and a tiny old man in a Hawaiian shirt stands up, smiling in confusion. “Hello, young lady, what can I do to help you?”

She holds out the ticket. “Tikki sent me for Longg.”

His face morphs into shock. “WHAT?” he yells, and Kagami shushes him. 

“Hawk Moth and Mayura showed up and were tailing Ladybug, she couldn’t detransform. Do you _want_ to attract their attention?” Kagami hisses, shushing him. “I need to get out there and help them!”

The old man glares at her and pulls a box out, opening it to reluctantly hand over a familiar necklace. Kagami’s face lights up as she grins at Longg, transforming in a flash and turning to leave. 

She has a feeling that she won’t get along with the Guardian and she doesn’t want to push her luck. 

She takes off in a run, meeting Ladybug on the roof. Chat Noir is on a roof across from them, and he waves with a grin. 

“The Akuma’s name is Love Eater,” Ladybug explains quickly, but then something ripples through the air and the akuma is fluttering away, purified. 

Chat Noir catches the victims in a flash, setting them down in confusion. He lands next to them, staring at the butterfly flying away. 

“What was _that_?” he asks, but neither of them have a clue. 

They get their answer a second later when wasps swarm from the hotel, stinging the few people wandering the streets. “Water dragon!” Ryuuko yells, and her liquified body surrounds Ladybug and Chat Noir in a bubble, impervious to the wasps attacking them. 

“Thanks, Ryuu,” Ladybug calls, and she scoops Chat Noir up and swings away, Ryuuko keeping up with them easily. The three of them land in front of the hotel, unsurprised to find Chloe akumatized yet again, standing proudly beside Hawk Moth. 

No, what surprises them is the green shield ready to shatter and let Mayura get to the Guardian, the Miracle box held in Hawk Moth’s hands, and the heroes with yellow eyes lined up in front of the upgraded Queen Wasp.

“Ladybug, Chat Noir, how lovely of you to make it,” Hawk Moth sneers. 

Ladybug sets Chat Noir down. “Sorry kitty, I was worried one of us would fall out of Ryuu’s bubble,” she whispers. Ryuuko can just make out the blush under his mask, but Ladybug doesn’t seem to notice, hyperfocused on the scene playing out in front of them. 

She’s worried, and Kagami wants to comfort her. But she can’t. She’s a shield right now, a living shield of water holding back the swarm of wasps. 

Chat Noir comforts her instead, placing an arm around her shoulder. “We’ve got this, my lady. It’s us against the world, remember?” He looks up. “All three of us. We’re not alone anymore.”

Ladybug smiles weakly, grabbing his hand as the controlled heroes run towards the bubble. 

They have each other. 

Everything is going to be okay. 

**Author's Note:**

> you can read the whole zine [here](https://kagamizine.tumblr.com/post/631073246951948288/after-months-of-work-the-zine-is-finally-here-i)  
> comments and kudos appreciated!!! <3 <3


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